Archive for the ‘Health & Wellness’ Category
Wednesday, August 10th, 2011
Massage therapists often gush about the therapeutic properties of massage therapy, saying it can lower levels of anxiety and stress, improve wellness, and even reduce pain. And for the most part, they’re right.
Indeed, many academic studies have demonstrated the therapeutic properties of massage therapy, but these studies are usually small in their number of participants, and often massage therapy is indicated as a complementary treatment, for example, as a non-invasive pain reliever for cancer patients. A study in the July 5 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine is therefore a breakthrough for massage therapists as it concludes that massage therapy isn’t just a good complementary therapy, rather, it is the best choice for treating lower back pain. (more…)
Tags: health, lower back pain, massage, massage therapist, massage therapy, medical massage therapy, muscle pain, pain
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Tuesday, May 31st, 2011
In our previous entry we described myofascial release, how it compares to structural integration, and the need to be highly trained in the modality in order to know how to manipulate fascia in the correct way so it creates an optimal pattern, allowing for natural, effortless movement. This week we’ll look at some of the unique properties of myofascial release. (more…)
Tags: fascia, health, massage, massage therapist, massage therapy, medical massage therapy, muscle pain, myofascial release, pain, tension
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Wednesday, May 18th, 2011
On the more therapeutic side of massage therapy, many modalities exist that focus on specific health benefits. We have written before, for example, about acupressure, structural integration, and the effectiveness of massage therapy as a Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) treatment. The modality we’re looking at this week, myofascial release, is another massage therapy technique designed for a specific health benefit. In this way it is much more a therapeutic modality than one designed for relaxation. (more…)
Tags: fascia, health, massage, massage therapy, medical massage therapy, muscle pain, myofascial release, pain, tension
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Wednesday, May 4th, 2011
Another week, yet another really great article and conclusion to reference from the Massage Therapy Journal. From page 97 of its Winter, 2010 edition, there is an excellent article demonstrating massage therapy’s proven effectiveness in relieving chronic neck and lower back pain, and its possible effectiveness in relieving a slew of other ailments as well. (more…)
Tags: back pain, health, massage, massage therapy, medical massage therapy, neck pain, pain, therapy
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Monday, April 25th, 2011
Last week we wrote generally about how sports massage therapy can help football players, stating that regular massage can help keep players fresh during long periods of training, as well as help players avoid or manage their injuries. Yet another way massage therapy can help all athletes – and especially football players – is in its ability to treat pain associated with scars. (more…)
Tags: health, massage, massage therapy, medical massage therapy, muscle pain, pain, scar, scars
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Tuesday, March 29th, 2011
Last week we wrote a post about an article in the AMTA’s Massage Therapy Journal about massage therapy and the skin, describing how the article does a good job of listing what therapists should look for when massaging and doing an intake of their clients’ skin.
This week, I want to continue our discussion of the article, as it really does a good job detailing common ailments of the skin that massage clients may have and what that means for the massage therapist (indeed, 11 of the article’s 14 pages – including pictures! – are dedicated to this).
Check out the article to find out more about bacterial conditions, including (more…)
Tags: AMTA, infections, massage, massage therapist, massage therapy, Massage Therapy Journal, skin, skin conditions
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Wednesday, March 23rd, 2011
Often a massage therapy career can be a bit of a grind, especially when a full schedule of regular clients keeps you seeing the same people and performing the same intake/massage. Fortunately, most licensing bodies require massage therapists to take continuing education credits in order to have their licenses renewed. Another way to stay fresh in your massage therapy career without taking a class is by picking up the AMTA’s Massage Therapy Journal (you can subscribe, go to the library, and access articles online).
Indeed, in the recently released, Winter (2010) edition of the MTJ there is a fabulously detailed article about massage therapy and skin (click here for a .pdf version of the article). It’s definitely worth the read, especially if you are in the mood to delve into a subject and expand your knowledge of skin and massage therapy. (more…)
Tags: AMTA, massage, massage therapist, massage therapy, Massage Therapy Journal, skin
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Thursday, March 17th, 2011
Over the past two weeks we’ve been looking at the increasing popularity of attending massage therapy school, and earlier this year we wrote an entry about massage therapy being named one of the top careers out there. The U.S. News & World Report wrote that massage therapy was a top career as the education required to become a massage professional was relatively inexpensive when compared to the amount of money a therapist earns, on average.
However, for people considering massage therapy as a career, financial considerations shouldn’t be the only factor. Massage therapists do a lot of good in the world, one example of this being their ability to help those suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). (more…)
Tags: altruism, health, high blood pressure, Intensive Care Unit, massage, massage therapist, massage therapy, medical massage therapy, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, stress, veterans
Posted in Health & Wellness, Stress Reduction, massage | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 22nd, 2011
We’ve written before about horses and animal massage therapy, mainly that animal massage is a growing industry among pet owners and that even some famous owners (Kentucky Derby winners and the Queen of England) spring for massage therapy for their horses.
Today I want to pass along an article from the Jackson, NJ Tri-Town News, that focuses on equine massage therapy (horse massage) and one therapist’s efforts in New Jersey to rehabilitate and maintain the health of horses who have retired from the racetrack or who have been rescued from slaughterhouse auctions. (more…)
Tags: animal, animal massage, equine massage, health, horse massage, massage, massage industry, massage therapy, medical massage therapy, pet
Posted in Health & Wellness, Pets, massage | No Comments »